Finally!! Bring on the NBA Finals!!!

It's time. The final 2 teams are set and ready to play until the other side drops. In one corner. the amazingly rejuvenated and Lazarus like Beasts of the East, the Boston Celtics, featuring a consensus top 5 PG in the NBA, and the only man (Pierce) in the past 10 seasons to knock off the top 2 players in the NBA in succession in position to position matchups (Conference and NBA Finals, 2008). Are they completely healthy? No, but still in pretty good shape. Are they older and slower? Yes, but still able to be explosive in spurts. Is this the toughest Series this group will have? Undoubtedly yes. Not only are the playing a revenge dwelling Lakers squad who have only gotten better personnel wise, the Lakers also have home court advantage, something that was key the last time these two teams met. If the Boston Celtics win this series, it will seal the 3 HOFers legacies on it's roster (Rondo may be a 4th HOF when it's all said and done!) and will also seal partially a legacy for Kobe Bryant as the Laker who couldn't beat their most hated rival when it counted. In the other corner, the LA Lakers. Hungry. Angry. Highly motivated to make up for their beat down in 2008. On the Laker side of things, they have no real reason on paper not to win this series. They are in better health (except for Bynum) Kobe is playing some of the best playoff basketball of his career, and Phil has the roster FOCUSED. Add that in with home court advantage and it is no wonder Vegas has LA not only winning the game tonight, but taking the entire series in 6-7 games. For me, the series is just too close to call. I don't honestly know who is going to win! These are my favorite types of Playoff series any way, so that is a treat. I only hope for a long, fought out series where both teams leave it on the floor. 7 games between these two juggernauts would be a dream come true. At this point, nothing left to do but sit back, relax, and see how things play out. Game on.

Finals Schedule

• Game 1 Thursday, June 3 Boston at LAL 9 p.m. ABC/R/TSN
• Game 2 Sunday, June 6 Boston at LAL 8 p.m. ABC/R/TSN
• Game 3 Tuesday, June 8 LAL at Boston 9 p.m. ABC/R/TSN
• Game 4 Thursday, June 10 LAL at Boston 9 p.m. ABC/R/TSN
• Game 5 * Sunday, June 13 LAL at Boston 8 p.m. ABC/R/TSN
• Game 6 * Tuesday, June 15 Boston at LAL 9 p.m. ABC/R/TSN
• Game 7 * Thursday, June 17 Boston at LAL 9 p.m. ABC/R/TSN

I'll be on twitter throughout the Finals follow me @slai23

NBA MVP Race: A 3 horse race in my opinion...

As far as I am concerned, the NBA MVP race at this point in time is between 3 players: Magic 2.0 (Lebron James), Jordan .75 (Wade), and Jordan .88 (Kobe). My scorecard has Bron and Wade as the frontrunners with Kobe a distant third due to his performance this season compared to last year coupled with him winning last year. Wade was behind Lebron in my opinion until about a month ago when he effectively lost his mind and started dropping monster games and carrying the Heat on his back. He might be a better shooter then Lebron James, and certainly is just as capable of taking over a game. So who takes it this year? My vote would probably at this point go to Lebron James because, like Kobe last year, he has his team ready to make a deep playoff run and is a bonnified Championship contender. At the time of this post, the Cavs are 3 games up on Boston in the East and seem to have the pieces (spot up shooters, ballhandlers, competent big men, and a superstar) to make noise and make it to the Finals this year. The league normally gives the MVP to the player it feels will make it out of the first round/make the deepest run in the playoffs. Dirk No-heart-iski is the glaring exemption. Now will the Cavs beat the Lakers? I have my doubts. I think that the Lakers have the pieces and the coaching to knock off the Cavs unless Lebron goes even more superhuman then normal and averages a triple double for the series (something I didn't think I would see in my lifetime.) It would also require that the Lakers absolutely DO NOT show up ready to play, and Kobe reverts to 2004 with his style of play that caught them a loss against the Pistons. I would love to hear who you all are voting for/ supporting for the MVP this year. What's your criteria for MVP? Best player on the best team? or Best player overall in the league?

Kobe Bryant: What happens when you hit a ceiling in your career you placed there yourself?

Kobe Bryant has long been an enigma. To be so gifted at such a young age, and to have such an understanding of the game and it's history is nothing short of remarkable. What is even more remarkable is the transformation he had over the years...going from clean cut, well spoken (he knows Italian for goodness sakes!), articulate superstar to getting a tattoo, screaming in slam about what rap he listens to and dropping MF every other sentence, fighting rape allegations, displaying an infallible cockiness and running another superstar out of LA (allegedly). Even with all the interviews (he really tried to sound like Mike) the moves, the fade away jump shot, and the nike commercials, it never seemed quite genuine. There was always a little hint (in my mind anyway) that he was trying to put out this facade, that everything was planned. But I have come to realize after stepping back and looking at Kobe Bean Bryant that he is now in no mans land, a no win situation, and has been there for some time. He is officially the Hilary Clinton of the NBA, well loved by a certain contingency of fans and completely detested by all the others. From the mistakes and arrogance displayed as a rookie, to him changing his number to 24 (come on!) to all the drama he has brought to the NBA and LA, he has placed himself in the unique position that no matter what he does or even how many more rings or accolades he achieves, a sizable group of fans and NBA watchers will still write him off. Whether he likes it or not, the standard for his position and game is Michael Jordan, and nothing he can say or do will keep people from comparing the two. These finals have made a lot of Kobe supporters as the greatest ever change their tune. No less then previous Kobe supporter John Hollinger had this to say about Kobe after Game 4:

"We just wet the bed," said Kobe Bryant, who should never again be compared to Michael Jordan unless his play undergoes a seismic shift."

What I find sad about his career and public perception is that the league and the mantle to be the greatest was handed to him on a silver platter when he first entered the league in 1996. Jordan was fading into his second retirement just as the Kobe train was starting. The league was HIS. If Kobe Bryant had kept his head down, worked hard, played hard, and had been a team player in LA, what would we think of him now? Envision a career for him that had him playing his way into the rotation, contributing in the triangle with Shaq and winning those rings, while being the little brother and getting along decently with his teammates and coach. Picture him playing smart against the Piston's traps in 2004 and picture him being a team player and not pouting in that game 7 vs. the Suns. In all truthfulness, we might have seen Shaq gracefully become #2 as he got older, and Kobe might have 4 or 5 rings now. The way that team was set up in 2000-2003? With a positive mindset and a Lebron attitude instead of Kobe attitude? He wouldn't have half the friction he has now from the public. If he had been himself instead of reciting come fly with me? He could have moved units for Nike, had endorsements, and been sitting pretty as the undisputed and revered king of the league and worthy successor to Jordan. Imagine a humble hardworking Kobe Bryant and your thoughts become the same as mine: what a waste. It may seem like an odd thing to say considering he is still a Hall Of Famer and 3 time world champion, but all of his accomplishments today pale in comparison of what they could have been if he had played his cards right.

Brought Back for your reading pleasure... Classic post-For the last time....Kobe Bryant isn't better then MJ! (part 1)

In case you haven't paid a visit over to the worldwide follower in sports, they are doing a whole section of the site on the best Shooting Guard in NBA history, with the people voting, etc. etc. I would like to draw your attention to a post I did 6 months ago concerning the top 2 people on the voting list, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant:

It gets really old comparing Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, but lets try to look at it from 3 facets: statistically, physically, individual accolades, and overall team performance. Stats are probably easier to look at objectively, so we'll start with that.

Michael Jordan's first 9 seasons:

667 games:

32.3 Points per game
6.3 Rebounds per game
5.9 Assists per game
2.7 Steals per game
1.03 Blocks per game
84.6% FT (9x per game)
51.6% FG (24x per game)

And keep in mind this is factoring in the year he only played 18 games because of a broken foot. His stats were actually BETTER than this in the other 8 years.

Kobe Bryant's first 9 seasons:

627 games

22.4 Points per game
5.1 Rebounds per game
4.5 Assists per game
1.5 Steals per game
0.6 Blocks per game
83.1% FT (7x per game)
45.2% FG (17x per game)

And you people HONESTLY are trying to state that Kobe is as good as Jordan is, and could even end up greater?

Kobe would have to post averages better then 32 points a game for the next 11 seasons to tie Michael Jordan's career scoring title. In that final season, Kobe Bryant would turn 40.

For the last time....Kobe Bryant isn't better then MJ! (part 1)

It gets really old comparing Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, but lets try to look at it from 3 facets: statistically, physically, individual accolades, and overall team performance. Stats are probably easier to look at objectively, so we'll start with that.

Michael Jordan's first 9 seasons:

667 games:

32.3 Points per game
6.3 Rebounds per game
5.9 Assists per game
2.7 Steals per game
1.03 Blocks per game
84.6% FT (9x per game)
51.6% FG (24x per game)

And keep in mind this is factoring in the year he only played 18 games because of a broken foot. His stats were actually BETTER than this in the other 8 years.

Kobe Bryant's first 9 seasons:

627 games

22.4 Points per game
5.1 Rebounds per game
4.5 Assists per game
1.5 Steals per game
0.6 Blocks per game
83.1% FT (7x per game)
45.2% FG (17x per game)

And you people HONESTLY are trying to state that Kobe is as good as Jordan is, and could even end up greater?

Kobe would have to post averages better then 32 points a game for the next 11 seasons to tie Michael Jordan's career scoring title. In that final season, Kobe Bryant would turn 40.